Sunday, October 27, 2013

Recently the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan supported this "trial balloon" floated by untested Premier Kathleen Wynne that Corporate Board listing in Toronto must have at least 3 Female Corporate Board members by 2020 or face de-listing. Response has been mute - only because it is unPC to say anything.

National Post columnist Matt Gurney suggested that if they want to invest their $160bn with that requirement - there is nothing stopping them - and the fact less than 30% of High School teachers are men doesn't seem to bother them - so they should get their own house in order BEFORE they begin lecturing the rest of us.

But the supposed "reason" for greater Gender Diversity is the idea that companies benefit somehow from these "affirmative action" quotas - but that evidence is flimsy indeed. (In fact the supposed proof of the superior returns from female directors has not even been released - but "trust us" says female advocacy group "Catalyst" - dedicated to getting this kind of legislation through.)

But guess what - none of the research is conclusive. In fact it seems quite likely that they have confused cause and effect so that wealthy, well-performing companies may just be able to hire more women - rather the the other way around.

Michael Gurian - author of "The Minds of Boys" - on why girls do better than boys in school.

He researched schools in 35 countries to find out
why girls were outstripping boys. He believes the reason lies mainly
with the learning differences of the two genders which are
pre-determined by structural differences in the brain. Girls have a
greater capacity for verbal skills, which encompass reading, writing and
speaking, while boys have a natural advantage with spatial/mechanical
skills.

and related.

Rachel Simmons - author of "Odd Girl Out" on how girls show aggression

Following last weeks outrage by feminists about the gendered phrase "In all our son's command" in our national anthem - apparently Margaret Atwood is behind yet another crazy campaign - the supposed lack of "equal gender" representation on our new plastic currency. You can't make this stuff up!

Sun commentator David Menzies gives this all the attention this issue deserves.

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

.... a volatility in gender roles is usually symptomatic of tensions and anxieties about larger issues. That is, sexual identity becomes a primary focus only when other forms of identification and affiliation—religious, national, tribal, familial—break down.

I consider it completely irresponsible that public schools offer sex education but no systematic guidance to adolescent girls, who should be thinking about how they want to structure their future lives: do they want children, and if so, when that should be scheduled, with the advantages and disadvantages of each option laid out. Because of the stubborn biologic burden of pregnancy and childbirth, these are issues that will always affect women more profoundly than men.

Similarly, our present system of primary and secondary education should be stringently reviewed for its confinement of boys to a prison-like setting that curtails their energy andrequires ideological renunciation of male traits.

But the majority of earthlings do seem to find clear gender roles helpful compass points in the often conflicted formation of identity.

I close with this question: is a nation whose elite education is
increasingly predicated on the neutralization of gender prepared to
defend itself against that growing challenge?

In the end, the governor who earned his fame as a gladiator won Tuesday night’s gubernatorial debate with a chivalrous kiss on the cheek.State Sen. Barbara Buono went first, and all she could muster was a sideways compliment that was grudging and quick: "He’s good on late-night TV," she snapped.Then came Gov. Chris Christie’s turn. And he layered on the sweet tones as if Buono were an old friend who needed some cheering up."She’s obviously a good and caring mother and someone who cares deeply about public service," he said, turning toward her. "I would never denigrate her service."

Wednesday, October 09, 2013

American adults scored below the international average on a global test, according to results released Tuesday.

Adults in Japan, Canada, Australia, Finland and multiple other countries
scored significantly higher than the United States in all three areas
on the test - math, reading and problem-solving using technology – all skills
considered critical for global competitiveness and economic strength.

Beyond basic reading and math, respondents were tested on
activities such as calculating mileage reimbursement due to a salesman,
sorting email and comparing food expiration dates on grocery store tags.

The problem is most people blame Men for dropping out of their children's lives - whereas it seems equally as likely that women drive their husbands out of their children's lives in order to exact revenge and/or establish a new step-father.

2) Disgraced UW on-campus Feminist Megan Lanker-Simons has plead "no contest" to charges she fabricated the online comments she claimed were made targeting her for rape. The hoax has laid bare the empty rhetoric of feminist Anti-Rape Campaigns the University. Of course she has been a leading member of the campus Anti-Rape Campaigns until she graduated in the spring so she could enroll at another western university's Law faculty.

"... the mother consistently thwarted the father’s attempts to sell the
property for a realistic price, resulting in a string of legal actions."

"The father also had to argue for the right to see his 12-year-old son
and teenage daughter one-on-one, after the mother ignored a court access
order."

"The “needless litigation” led the claimant to receive
counselling for stress, precipitated a “very painful medical condition
that has needed surgical procedures,” and hindered his capacity to spend
time with the children, according to Brown."

"I find the [mother’s] litigation conduct, related both to the selling
of the commercial property and to parenting arrangements, considered in
their totality, is a form of emotional abuse and harassment that
constitute a form of family violence.”

I’m not interested in teaching books by women. ... when I was given this job I said I would only teach the people that I truly, truly love. What I teach is guys. Serious heterosexual guys. F. Scott Fitzgerald, Chekhov, Tolstoy. Real guy-guys. Henry Miller. Philip Roth.

Of course it is related to a sad debate about establishing a secular state where NO evidence of religious symbols are allowed - Christian, Hindu, or any other - so it is even more ironic that this disruption occurred to the left-wing PQ Government hanging by a thread-like seat margin in the provincial legislature.